In article <[log in to unmask]>,
[log in to unmask] (Kent Covert) writes:
> In article <[log in to unmask]>,
[log in to unmask] writes:
>> I have three question to the VAX and the Internet environment:
>>
>> 1:  What is Gopher, and how do I use it?
 
Well, I would probably give an inaccurate description of this one, so
I'll leave it to someone else.
 
>> 2:  What is an Archive (or similar expression)?  Where is one located
>>     and how do I use it?
>
 
An Internet archive is a server connected to the Internet which allows
users of the Internet access into the server in order to upload and
download files using standard Internet protocols.  In other words, it
keeps files that you can download and accepts files that you upload,
according to any restrictions placed upon those up & downloads by the
site's administrator's.
 
As to how, there are several methods.  One, that you mention, is gopher.
Another gopher-like protocol is veronica.  I'm not real familiar with
these, myself, but the last time I played around with gopher, it has
become a lot more user-friendly of late.
 
Another method is called anonymous ftp.  It is called "anonymous,"
because your login name is "anonymous" without the quotes.  Ftp stands
for File Transfer Protocol, and it is designed specifically to
tranfer files back and forth.  On the VAX, you can type FTP and
wait for the FTP> prompt for help on the actual commands.  You should
be able to also type, from the $ prompt, HELP FTP, for help about
what ftp is.  The biggest stumbling block for beginners is the
method of transfer.  Just like Kermit, you must specify when the
file to be transferred is a binary file.  The only difference is
that the command BINARY puts both machines into binary mode at the
same time.
 
Ex:  I want a copy of the latest pkzip, and I read somewhere that it
is located at the anonymous ftp site oak.oakland.edu.  So, I first
make sure I have enough disk space on my VAX account, then I go
for it:
 
$ ftp oak.oakland.edu
Connecting...
OAK.OAKLAND.EDU> Please send your login name:
login:  anonymous
Login 'anonymous' ok, please send your e-mail name as password:
password:  [log in to unmask]
           ^^^^^^^^^^
           1.  This is all that's really necessary if you get
           mail on the machine you are on.  The @ symbol without
           parameters sends the machine name to the site.
           2.  Like any other password, it won't show on the screen.
           3.  Please be sure to use your address, not mine :)
 
Welcome user!  Blah, blah, blah.
ok
OAK.OAKLAND.EDU> cd pub/msdos/archiver  *Note the forward slash in Unix
                                         style.
CWD command successful.
OAK.OAKLAND.EDU> ls                     give abbreviated directory
Searching /bin/sh....
...
OAK.OAKLAND.EDU> dir                    give full directory listing
Searching /bin/sh...
 
xxx---aaa--rrandotherjunk   1000034  Jan 14 1800 00-index.txt
...
xxx----dkjsdhewindskjhhe      48016  Feb 3  1639 pkz204g.exe
...
OAK.OAKLAND.EDU> get 00-index.txt        *Since no file type was specified,
                                         it defaults to ASCII.
Opening for ASCII...
...1000034 bytes transferred.>
OAK.OAKLAND.EDU> binary
File transfer method STREAM selected.
OAK.OAKLAND.EDU> get pkz204g.exe
Opening for BINARY tranfer...
...48016 bytes transferred.>
OAK.OAKLAND.EDU> quit
QUIT command received.
bye.
$
 
I've typed a lot of this from memory, and it may vary a little (but
not much) from site to site, but it does give the general idea.
If you want to learn more, I'd suggest reading the newsgroup
comp.archives.msdos.announce and comp.archives.msdos.d and find
the pointers to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ).  About the
only thing left is to remember that these originated from Unix,
so if the filename has capital letters, you _must_ use capitals
in your GET commands.  So, if a directory index is named 00INDEX.txt,
you must type:
 
get 00INDEX.txt
 
Last, but not least, is FSP, which works like FTP, only in the background.
It is a very efficient method of file transfer, since it does not
rely on interactive input.  Unfortunately, I don't believe it has
been ported to VMS yet.  The only code I could find was for Unix,
and the calls were so Unix specific that I gave up rather quickly
(it wouldn't even compile after adding the UNIXLIKE.H).
 
> I'm going to leave these 2 questions to someone more knowledgable about
> these than I (John Harlan?).
>
 
So, now only one question is left :)
 
John [not Harlan]
 
--
Drivel of the year:
"...DOS is utterly unable to handle more than 1MB of memory.  Removing
this limitation from DOS would result in something that just _isn't_
DOS any more--it wouldn't run existing DOS programs." -PC Mag, Nov 23,
1993.
---> OS/2? - what DOS could have been and would like to be.